Notary's conviction quashed as court had not clearly listed charges

A former notary facing the prospect of a term behind bars over misappropriation and fraud, has had his conviction quashed on appeal over a defect in the format of the judgment. However, appeal proceedings will continue on the merits of the case. Pierre Falzon, the 58-year old former notary who had voluntarily renounced his warrant in 2015, had been condemned to a five-year effective jail term and ordered to refund more than €100,000 to a number of former clients, after being declared guilty in October 2018. Dr Falzon had faced 37 charges revolving around misappropriation of funds which never made it to public coffers. Investigations had kicked off after the police were inundated with reports and complaints by clients of the former notary, claiming that deeds he had drawn up had not been registered, since the relatives taxes had never been paid. Twenty-seven cases of suspected misappropriation had eventually come to light, prompting the police to press charges. Those proceedings had resulted in a lengthy judgment – some 62 pages of evidence, juridical references and reasoning – wherein the Magistrates’ Court had concluded that the prosecution had proved its case, thereby...